


Braided

by Horns of Mischief (Rinelin)



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, Fluff, Lots and lots of fluff I think..., M/M, Sweet Dummy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-22
Updated: 2013-11-22
Packaged: 2018-01-02 08:59:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,688
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1054914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rinelin/pseuds/Horns%20of%20Mischief
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony Stark – genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist. A man with multiple doctorates, worldwide leader in clean energy production. Famous Iron Man. Could. Not. Make. A. Goddamn. Braid. So he came up with a plan. A genius plan. The only way Tony Stark knew how to solve problems. He built a robot to do it for him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Braided

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Conreeaght](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Conreeaght/gifts).



> Just a quick idea I couldn't get out of my mind and just because I love Frostiron fluff so much ♥
> 
> As always: no beta. Sorry~!  
> You can also find me on [Tumblr](http://horns-of-mischief.tumblr.com/)

Tony Stark – genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist. A man with multiple doctorates, worldwide leader in clean energy production. Famous Iron Man. Could. Not. Make. A. Goddamn. Braid.

 

 

He could coil a multitude of wires and cords in a complicated manner, but braiding hair? It was a science in itself, one he was somehow unable to master. Especially if it came to hair of one God of Mischief.

Tony noticed  that Loki’s hair grew significantly longer since their first encounter, almost six years ago. It was now long enough to reach his waist and often caught on things if left unattended, so the god had to tie it. But to do so he had to summon a double and he always whined about that.

One day the inventor thought he would spare his lover the trouble and tried doing it himself. It was a disaster. The Trickster’s hair was silky smooth and spilled between Tony’s fingers almost like water. He ultimately managed to tangle it so much that it took Loki and Pepper almost half a day to undo his ‘ _work_ ’. After that Tony was forever banned from touching the god’s hair unless it was tied securely.

So the engineer came up with a plan. A genius plan. The only way Tony Stark knew how to solve problems. He built a robot. Well, not exactly. He started with an elaborate simulation, full of measurements and right angles for the strands to be weaved together. He studied multiple photos and clips from YouTube, so that his program would calculate the right way to braid Loki’s hair perfectly.

He started simple, with the most common weave. It took him almost a week to complete the whole procedure and then another to build Dummy a special claw solely for this task. The small robot was ecstatic to learn that he would be responsible for grooming Loki’s long and shiny hair. He was very attached to the god, because Loki always treated him like a living being and not an object. It was endearing to see him going out of his way to bring the god some sort of a gift, every time he would visit Tony in his workshop. Sometimes the bot would even bring a single flower (Tony had no idea where they came from) and Loki would smile one of his genuine smiles and thank the small construct.

 ~

First part done, the engineer had to somehow test his newest invention, but asking Loki was out of the question until he was sure that everything worked perfectly.

He didn’t actually had many options, considering that his hair was to short, Steve’s and Clint’s even more so. Bruce was out of the country helping people somewhere in South America (not that his hair was long enough either). Natasha was on a mission, God or Fury only knows where and Pepper was in Chicago. So it left him with only one lab rat available – Thor. Tony was lucky that the Thunder God was currently residing in Stark Tower and not somewhere in New Mexico or wherever Jane Foster was at the time.

Stark finished tweaking Dummy’s new and shiny claw and asked Jarvis to inform Thor that he would like to talk to him.

Only a few minutes later the elevator doors opened soundlessly and admitted the God of Thunder into Tony’s sanctuary.

 ‘Good day my friend! What urgent matter would you like to discuss with me?’ Thor boomed from the entrance, then frowned. ’Does it concern my brother?’

 He and Loki were on better terms now, but sometimes they would still engage in shouting matches that had the potential to shatter Tony’s reinforced glass windows.

 ‘Well sorta, but not in a bad way!’ Tony reassured quickly. ‘I just need your help with a little project of mine. It’s to be a gift for Loki, but I need to test it first.’

‘What is my role in this then?’

‘Ah, you Big Guy just sit right here and let Dummy do all his magic!’ Tony smiled at him and patted a low stool for the god to sit on.

‘Did Loki let you study his _Seiðr_? And you managed to teach it to this creature?’ Thor eyed poor Dummy suspiciously. The bot whirred in place as if afraid to approach the Thunderer.

 ‘What? Nah… It’s a figure of speech. Just sit and relax. Dummy, do your job!’ Tony waved-in the small robot and it reluctantly rolled closer and extended a claw towards Thor. He then gently took some strands of the god’s golden hair and started braiding it carefully. After a short while he finished his work with a sharp whistle. The inventor stepped in to examine his work. Some strands were lose, but it was a mistake easy to fix. He took the small braid in hand and tugged. 

 ‘Did he pull your hair?’ He asked the god.

‘No, he was most gentle. Is this to be Loki’s gift?’

‘Yeah. You know how he always struggles with his hair, but refuses to cut it? I wanted to make it easier for him and since apparently I can’t do braids even if my life would depend on it, I had to invent someone who could.’ The inventor shrugged. He was pleased with the outcome. ‘Thanks Thor, now I have new data to play with and some new designs to make.’

 The inventor was lost in his calculations before Thor even left his workshop, the god now used to Tony’s eccentric behavior. He had to design every algorithm separately: fishtails, French braids, mermaid braids…. And anything else Loki would want.

 

When he finally came to bed that night (and thanks to Loki being there, the engineer generally stopped spending all nights huddled over some project, unless it was really necessary) his brain was bleeding data. At this point he was an expert at certain hair styles and accessories. He was amazed how women could keep track of them all. He usually just put some gel on to look presentable enough.

The god was sleeping, his long hair neatly laid out on the pillow. Tony shuffled closer and slung an arm around the immortal’s waist to drag him flush against his own chest. Loki just hummed sleepily, but did not wake up. The inventor kissed his nose and went to sleep.

 

~

 

The next two weeks were filled with constant programming. So much that Tony’s fingers started to get cramps. Eventually Loki noticed Stark’s hyperactive behavior (more hyperactive than usual, that is), but when Tony admitted that, what he was working on was a surprise, the god stopped questioning him and simply waited for the inventor to finish whatever he was doing.

Finally, after a whole month of trial and error Tony was satisfied enough to move the project from alpha, to beta stage (he would never acknowledge a final version simply because there was always a room for improvement).

 

~

 

It was a warm Saturday morning. Late spring breeze gently swayed the curtains and soft light illuminated his god’s porcelain skin. Tony stayed in bed a bit longer, savoring the view, lightly drawing small circles on Loki’s exposed hip and waited with anticipation for the god to wake up. When he finally did Tony greeted him with a sweet kiss. As they parted Loki smiled at him shyly.

 ‘You seem to be in a good mood today.’

‘Ah, I finally finished your present.’ The engineer smiled back at him.

‘Oh? Will you show me then? I must admit, I am quite curious about this pet project of yours.’ The god nipped at Tony’s lip again.

‘Yeah? Sadly it’s in the workshop, so maybe after breakfast?’ He then captured Loki’s lips in a deep kiss and sucked lightly on his lower lip.

‘I think,’ Loki gasped, ’that I prefer to skip straight to dessert.’

Tony only chuckled. ‘It can be arranged.’

 

~

 

After a quick shower the engineer took Loki’s hand and almost dragged him downstairs to his workshop. He even skipped coffee, his veins buzzing with nervous anticipation.

Tony seated Loki on the same stool Thor previously occupied and gestured towards his small bot.

 ‘ _Tada~!_ ’

‘It’s Dummy…’ the god said uncertainly, not knowing what to expect.

‘Well yeah, but he has a new function! Close your eyes!’

 Stark was practically bouncing on his seat.

Loki eyed him suspiciously knowing fully well Dummy’s clumsy way of doing things, but after a short moment of hesitation, did as instructed. He heard the robot approach him and then felt a weird sensation at the back of his head. It was like a memory from long ago, when he was much younger and his mother would sit behind him and brush his hair. It was very soothing and felt wonderful. He almost purred from delight. It must have shown on his face because Tony asked.

‘You like that?’

‘Yes…’he did indeed purr, but it just felt so good.

‘I’m glad.’ Loki then opened his eyes and glanced at his lover. Tony was grinning widely, his eyes beaming with pride.

When the feeling finally stopped, the god looked over his shoulder at the bot.

Dummy whistled at him cheerfully.

 ‘Thank you, little one,’ the god whispered and patted the bot. Only then he noticed an end of a black braid still dangling from Dummy’s claw. He touched the back of his head and his eyes went wide. 

‘You taught him to do that?’ he asked with a bit of ave. It was always a pain to do his hair every morning, but he knew that Tony liked it long, so he never thought about cutting it short again. The engineer often would play with his braid when it was in his reach.

Said engineer just shrugged.

‘I thought, you’d like it.’

‘I love it. Thank you!’ Loki rose from his seat and claimed Tony’s lips. ‘I think,’ the Trickster whispered against his mouth, ‘that now I need to reward you for all your efforts.’

The inventor only smiled mischievously back at him.

‘I might have some ideas in mind.’

‘Good,’ Loki purred and with a loud ‘ _pop_ ’ teleported them to their bedroom.


End file.
